I had to do something I hate this week. I had to send an email to the Girl Scout parents that was not so nice. I needed to remind them to remind their daughters that any issues with Girl Scouts - meeting, activities, etc. need to be directed to me and NOT JANEY. A couple of the girls have decided that Girl Scout isn't for them and rather than just quit, they are being typical nasty 10 year olds and harassing the leader's kid. Nice, huh? Well, I got so many supportive messages from the other Girl Scout parents. Most of them saying they agree that the attitudes are getting out of hand and that there is no reason for Janey to be a target at school.
And then I get the one from her.
You know, the mom that never shows up? The one who knows how to do everything better than I do, but yet won't lift a finger to help out. The one whose personal choices are always made from the perspective of what's best for her - never what's best for her child. The one whose lifestyle is (in my opinion) bordering on child abuse/neglect.
This email ripped me up one side and back down the other. It went on and on about Janey's behavior, (what?) and how her daughter has learned nothing from Girl Scouts this year at all.
I answered this email in a very nice and polite way. I addressed all of the concerns she expressed and also explained that this email was in no way meant as a personal attack on her or her daughter, it was a general email to parents and the third step in the discipline procedure that I have in place.
I never got a reply.
But here's the kicker -- I spent the entire day crying over this email. I didn't get anything done that I had planned to do. I just sat and blubbered about this woman's ridiculousness all day.
I let a person for whom I have no respect dictate how I felt about myself. Stupid, huh? I know. So what do I do now? How do I deal with the fact that I am just way too sensitive? I kind of like the fact that I'm passionate about things, but is it possible to be passionate and tough at the same time? Will a tougher exterior make me less approachable? Am I even capable of developing a tougher skin - and for that matter- do I even really want one?
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2 comments:
You have much more control than me. I would have written a seemingly nice email filled with rude sarcasm. Or approached her personally.
But I may have cried too. It's okay to cry.
Came here from a Google blog alert.. you wrote about Girl Scouts. I've had troops for the last 10 years. Fun, isn't it?
:)
I don't think you're too sensitive... I think the mother who emailed you is INsensitive. And her rudeness helps explain why her daughter is such a twit.
It's awfully hard to put up with stuff like that, especially when you're the one doing all the work. Ungrateful parents are just so much fun, aren't they?
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